Crystal Palace and Everton have been dealt a setback in their pursuit of Morgan Gibbs-White as he wants to stay with Wolves and fight for his place in the team.
According to The Guardian, Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White is prepared to stay put at the Molineux and fight for his place amidst interest from Premier League rivals Crystal Palace and Everton.
Gibbs-White is a product of Wolves’ youth setup and has been on the club’s books since 2008. The 22-year-old midfielder made his first-team debut for the Midlands outfit in August 2018. He has made 86 appearances for the Premier League outfit, but most of them have been from the bench.
Gibbs-White spent the last season away on loan at Sheffield United and made a huge impression. In 32 matches for the Blades, the young midfielder bagged a return of 12 goals and ten assists. His performances for the EFL Championship side have led to a serious interest in his services from several Premier League clubs, including Crystal Palace and Everton.
Crystal Palace are looking at Gibbs-White as a replacement for Conor Gallagher, who has returned to Chelsea after his loan spell expired. The Eagles were pushing to sign Flynn Downes but were beaten to his signing by West Ham United, forcing them to look at the Wolves midfielder.
Meanwhile, Everton are in the market for reinforcements in the centre of the park after losing Fabian Delph and Donny van de Beek, with the latter’s loan spell coming to an end. Furthermore, the futures of Allan and Andre Gomes are also uncertain, while Dele Alli has proven to be a disastrous signing so far.
So, Everton are in need of another midfielder who can add quality and depth to their ranks, making Gibbs-White a viable target. The 22-year-old can essay multiple roles in the centre of the park and would be a long-term signing given his young age. To that end, Everton made an opening offer of £25 million to sign him but saw it get knocked back by Wolves.
The Merseyside outfit were preparing a new offer for Gibbs-White, but they and Crystal Palace have both been handed a blow in pursuit of the Englishman. As per the report, the young midfielder is ready to stay put at the Molineux and fight for a place in Bruno Lage’s side instead of pushing for an exit this summer.
It will come as a setback for Crystal Palace and Everton, who will now be forced to look elsewhere to bolster their midfield unit before the new season kicks off.
